Nationally-known assessment expert Trudy Banta is the keynote speaker for Grand Valley's first University-wide Assessment Conference, planned for January 7, 2011, at the Pew Grand Rapids Campus' Eberhard Center. The purpose of the Effective Assessment: Practicing Excellence, Excellent Practice conference is to showcase assessment practices in use throughout the university and to give faculty and administrators the opportunity to consult with Dr. Banta. Registration for the day-long conference is free to GVSU faculty, staff and students thanks to a sponsorship from all Colleges and several offices within Academic and Student Affairs.

The Office of Undergraduate Research and Scholarship (OURS) has launched a new website for students and faculty interested in undergraduate research and scholarship. www.gvsu.edu/ours

The site provides information for students about how to get started on research and scholarship, funding opportunities, scholarship opportunities, venues for dissemination, research and scholar support services, and information about Student Scholars Day and Student Summer Scholars. Similar information is provided for faculty, as well as resources for faculty interested in working with undergraduate students.

This site is intended to be user friendly for faculty and for students. If there is additional information we can provide, please do not hesitate contacting the OURS staff via email (ours@gvsu.edu) or via phone 1-8100.

Warm regards,
Susan Mendoza

3. More ways to highlight Student Work – Mary Schutten

In addition to the university's new registry, here's another way to highlight student work:

Please forward the information below to anyone participating in undergraduate research that you feel might be interested in pursuing graduate study. There is no cost to the student or the student's institution to participate in this program.

Dear Students:

The Council on Undergraduate Research hosts a Registry of Undergraduate Researchers. The purpose of this registry is to facilitate matchmaking between undergraduates who have research experience and a desire to pursue an advanced degree, with graduate schools seeking high quality students who are well prepared for research. The Registry is open to students and graduate schools in the fields of Anthropology/Archaeology, Arts/Humanities, Biology/Biochemistry, Business, Chemistry/Biochemistry, Economics, Education, Engineering, English and Linguistics, Environmental Studies, Geosciences, Health Professions, History, Journalism and Communications, Mathematics/Computer Science, Physics/ Astronomy, Political Science, Psychology, Social Work and Sociology.

Any undergraduate may go to www.cur.org/ugreg/to fill out a simple curriculum vitae form. There is no charge to the student and records will be made available to bona fide Graduate Schools that contract with CUR for this service. Organizations or companies seeking the students’ information for other marketing purposes will not be granted access. Graduate School representatives may contact students to invite applications or visits to the campus and laboratory, or to share information about their research programs and financial support opportunities.

Graduate schools may provide a link to their websites, and may provide a short description of opportunities, such as research fields and fellowships. It will also be possible for institutions to place an ad on the database website if the content is related to the mission of CUR and the Undergraduate Registry.

For graduate schools that wish to review the student information, there is an access fee of $1,500 for the entire database, or $300 for one specific discipline. Again, there is no cost to you as a student to create a profile.

We hope that students who are currently in their junior year will register now, but anyone with undergraduate research experience may register at any time. You will be able to update your listing as appropriate, to include any summer research experience or information about Senior Theses and test scores. We also welcome submissions by students who are engaged in Masters' Degree programs now but who plan on going on to a PhD program. Just fill out the information on the form including the date you intend to enter a PhD program and your date of completion of your undergraduate degree. Upload a link to your CV that contains complete information about your MS/MA degree activity (school, subject, thesis topic (if applicable), and advisor).

CUR believes that this service will be a great benefit for both students and graduate schools by narrowing the search for the right match. So if you are interested in graduate school, please take a moment to register now. Be sure to include a statement of your research interests, as this will be important for making the match.

As faculty prepare their syllabi for the winter semester, it may be helpful to encourage them to include, if not already included, a statement related to disability accommodations. This type of clear statement was suggested by Jeanne Kirkpatrick in her presentation on the new changes to the American with Disabilities Act. Two samples are provided below.

Statement on Disability Accommodations:
Any student who requires accommodation because of a physical or learning disability must contact Disability Support Services (http://www.gvsu.edu/dss) at 616-331-2490 as soon as possible. After you have documented your disability, please make an appointment or see me during office hours to discuss your specific needs.

Any student needing academic accommodations beyond those given to the entire class, please be advised that the University’s Office of Disability Support Services (DSS, ext. 12490) is available to all GVSU students. It is the student’s responsibility to request assistance from DSS.

5. Prerequisite Error Reports –from Jerry Montag

On Thursday, December 23rd, I will electronically send to the Dean’s Office the final list of students who are not meeting a prerequisite for one or more of their Winter 2011 registered courses. Since there is a very short window of opportunity to follow-up with these students before the winter 2011 semester begins, I am asking for your cooperation in distributing the list to unit heads as soon as possible and with a reminder of the following:

1 – An e-mail AND letter needs to be sent to these students immediately after you receive this report on Thursday, December 23. This will allow maximum time for the students to receive and follow-up on this urgent issue.

2 – Phone call follow-ups should be done for these students on January 5 and 6.

3 – If you request these students to be dropped from their Winter 2011 course(s), please send the packet of e-mails, letters and notation of telephone calls to me no later than Friday, January 7 with your authorization.

4 – IMPORTANT: Please be aware that if you are requesting to drop a student’s course(s) and it causes him or her to fall below 12 credits, it may affect his or her financial aid. Please make extra efforts on these students to ensure they maintain full time status.